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Company Grading FCAT Gets Failing Grade; State Wants Cash
June 28, 2010
The Florida Department of Education is giving a failing grade to the contractor that is late in reporting the results of the state’s FCAT standardized exam. The DOE is seeking test results for parents and more than $3 million in damages for contractor NCS Pearson.
“I fully realize that assessing these damages does not completely make up for the significant inconveniences being felt by students and their families, teachers and school administrators, but it does show very clearly that we are holding Pearson accountable for their failure to uphold the terms of the contract,” state education commissioner Eric Smith said in a release Thursday.
The FCAT is administered to students in grades 3 through 11, with reading and math tested in most grades and science and writing tested in some of them. NCS Pearson signed a $250 million contract with the state in 2009 to provide scoring of the exam until 2013. Harcourt Assessment, acquired by Pearson in 2007, had provided similar services related to the FCAT since 2000.
Scores from the writing exam were to be released in April, with scores from most reading, math and science exams following a few weeks after. Most of the results came several weeks late and some have yet to be delivered.
The delays, attributed to technical glitches, sparked outrage from the department, school districts and lawmakers. School officials have said that the delays cause problems in staffing because grade promotion for students is based on the exams.
Pearson has publicly taken responsibility for the situation and a spokesman said Thursday “we intend to fulfill all our obligations to the state.”
“We will continue to work with the DOE to work out the details on damages, but right now are focused on getting the test results delivered,” said spokesman Adam Gaber.
The Department of Education said it had not heard back directly from Pearson about the state’s intent to seek damages and Smith said in a statement that once all of the results have been delivered he may seek additional damages that are “consistent with all other missed delivery dates.”
Kathleen Haughney, The News Service Florida, contributed to this report.
Comments
16 Responses to “Company Grading FCAT Gets Failing Grade; State Wants Cash”
at times?
Sorry. I was just messing with you. You are very smart… just a little lengthy at times.
but tell me what part’s too complicated for you and I’ll try to explain it more simply
David trying to be helpful
Palin’s too deep for you????
sad
DHG- Do you write Sarah Palin’s speeches? She goes on and on and on and in the end….. we’re like… WHAT!?
REGARDING:
” . . . how can we get ride of the fcat ? If Teachers don’t care for it and parents don’t care for it and i know its not good for our children then what do we do about it ? ”
Or should we?
Just because something isn’t popular with everybody doesn’t mean it isn’t useful.
Some don’t like the FCAT because it makes it look like their children aren’t learning what they should. If they really aren’t learning, they should know about it. If they are, the test should show it.
Some don’t like it because it makes it look like they aren’t teaching what they should. If they really aren’t teaching in a way the students will learn, they should know about it. If they are, the test should show it.
Some don’t like it because it makes their school look bad. They are more interested in how their school looks than how its students are growing. Jesus spoke of whited sepulchers full of dead men’s bones.
In other words, looking good isn’t as important as being good.
Some don’t like it because they think they can and should teach to it. A proper test can only be taught to if it covers everything they are supposed to learn anyway.
Is it a proper test? Now, that’s an important question. If the answer’s NO, then the question is, “Should it be thrown out or simply made right?”
This leads us back to the question of why we ever came up with the idea in the first place.
The answer is that two different students from two different schools but identical academic records could apply for college or for a job and one not know half what the other did.
Somebody was inflating grades, claiming to have taught what they had not taught or at least that the student had learned what he had not learned. What’s more, the lower grade student from one school might still know twice what the higher grade student from the other school knew but not get the job or entrance into his favored college because of the school grades.
It wasn’t fair to the students who were missing out. It was costing them opportunities they deserved. Just think, if you could do well but didn’t get the chance because somebody else looked better who wasn’t–unfair. If you couldn’t do well but looked like you could, you will be discouraged when you fail or are fired rather than going into what you actually COULD do. Unfair both ways.
It wasn’t fair to the taxpayers who were paying to educate children, not entertain them. They were being robbed of their money and their children being underserved. That’s us, folks. We’re all taxpayers. We don’t mind paying for value, but we dislike being ripped off.
It wasn’t fair to the teachers who were being pressured to give grades the students didn’t deserve, just to make the school look better. Sometimes the best ones were pushed aside for failure to go-along-to-get-along.
Number One Wife says there are good tests out there which do a much better job of evaluating students, but Florida had its heart set on coming up with our own special test which these folks don’t seem able to handle.
Maybe we should call them the FCAT/Stanford 9 or the FCAT/ACT and then just use them as they already are.
David for fixing what’s broke
Not fixing what ain’t broke
Knowing the difference
How about a boycott? An organized skip day on test day!! Not everyone would do it….. but alot of people will. Then what would they do? Make up test day?…….. Skip day! It wouldn’t hurt to miss a few days of school….. and it would send a message to law-makers!!!
so what can we do to change things how can we get ride of the fcat ? If Teachers dont care for it and parents dont care for it and i know its not good for our children then what do we do about it ??????? i really want to know
As a retired teacher, I will continue to speak out against the FCAT. It is the main reason for my retirement. I said to my colleagues that the day I teach to one test is the day that education starts going down a slippery slope. The only ones to benefit from the FCAT are those test-makers and graders whoi get paid a pretty penny cfor doing so. FCAT has driven the curriculum in this county-eliminating many necessary subjects-history for one and many electives that give diversification and added employment skills ot all of our students
I’m so thankful that my children are out of school. This school system is why we put our children in private school! They received an all around GOOD EDUCATION, not an FCAT education. They were tested on what they studied all year and passed accordingly to the next grade. I agree with whoever said we need to get rid of those making these decisions and get someone who wants our children to be able to compete in this world. A GOOD elementary education can go a long way!! Not everyone is able to go to college.
amen to all these posts DO AWAY WITH THE FCAT NOW WE ARE SICK OF IT its not helping are kids out not one bit !!!!!! someone really needs to listen to all of us . what do we need to do have a strike or maybe vote some people out of office
I would like to know what the hold up is with getting the FCAT scores back, they want to pour this crap test down our children and having a time limit on each test, but yet when it comes time for them to get them graded and sent back; it seems they are taking their ever loving time. I feel they should have a time limit as well…
Ahhhh really……The district puts pressure on our kids to pass this silly thing rather than them taking a standardized test like normal, so now the pressure is reversed. Please someone help these teachers and kids. This FCAT has got to go. I’m not surprised our drop out rate isn’t higher with kids getting so discouraged because “it doesn’t matter, I’m not going to pass it anyway”. Please someone do something.
Let’s see: Not Passing FCAT = Frustrated Parents and Students
Frustrated Students = Increased Drop Out Rate (Discouragement)
Frustrated Parents having to purchase online services and laptops to
help students finish the required credits they need because the district
has had the student in “Intensive Classes” over and over again and the
yep
competence being graded by incompetents
What a glorious world!